A good friend of mine has four Chinchillas. They are WONDERFUL pets! There is one who doesn't like people much, but she usually just runs off when you reach for her.

I loathe pet stores where you can just reach in and pet the animals. That is sooo mad for the animals, so stressful. I'm not surprised the Chin bit you. They are easily stressed animals, and living where anyone can just reach in and pet you anytime is very stressful. Plus, when they are young, they really don't like to be petted. Blame the pet store in that case, not the Chins!!

You can meet my friend's fuzz-rockets here: http://www.geocities.com/hyper_chinchilla/chinchilla